Procedure for Rearing broiler and layer poultry birds In Africa

PROJECT PLANNING

Before starting a project, four important criteria should be
considered:
- Capital
- Farm
- Management
- Marketing
These four important criteria should come together in order to
achieve success and also the farmer's attitude towards the project.
If one of the criteria is not met, most probably will end up with
failure.
CAPITAL
Before starting a project, capital needed are as follows:
Fixed Cost
- Barn included building fees (Area for 1 bird – 1 Square foot)
- Water tank (together with pvc join)
- Heater (1 small hoover = 500 day old chick)
- Water drinkers for chick (4 units = 100 birds)
- Feed troughs for chick (long trough: 3 units = 100 birds)
- Automatic drinkers (2 units = 100 birds)
- Feed troughs – hanging (2 units = 100 birds)
- Store for keeping apparatus and feed
- Other expenditures (unexpected)
Current Cost
- Day old chicks
- Poultry feed – starter, developer (in layers) and finisher
- Electricity/diesel/water
- Vaccine and medicine
- Building depreciation (5 years)
- Apparatus depreciation (3 years)
- Bank loan interest
- Other expenditures (unexpected)

FARM
Choosing Of Area
- Sufficient area of land
- Good irrigation
- Preferable higher land so that the air ventilation is good
- Far from human activities, have good road connection,
electricity supply, and clean water supply and free from chicken
enemies for e.g. wild animals
- Do not mix with other kinds of poultry such as duck and
village chicken
- Far form housing estates
- Near to the market place
Housing Design and System
The barn should have the following criteria:
- Good air ventilation to dry up the moisture and minimize
ammonia gas from the feaces.
- The size of the barn should be suitable with the number of
chicken reared. Do not build barn that is too small or too bid
because it is not profitable. The suitable size is 1 square foot per
bird. For e.g. 5000 birds need 5000 square feet. Suggested dimension
of the barn: 25feet x 200feet (1 barn) or 25feet x 100feet (2 barns)
- Location of the barn, East – West direction, in order to
avoid from the direct hot sun.
Housing System
Can be divided into 2:
- Raised floor system using cages
- Deep litter system

MANAGEMENT
Either the project will succeed or fail will depend on the level of
competent management. A competent farmer will look into all aspect
of management in order to get maximum income with minimum
expenditure.
These management aspects should be seriously considered:
Breed Selection: criteria of quality day old chick
- Crive, bright round eyes, strong legs, stand steadily and
have dry and soft feather
- The size should not be too small and uniformity in size
- Free from blemish for example leg bent, broken wings, blind
and others
- Purchase day old chick from accredited suppliers.
Feed
Feed is one of the main important factors, which should be seriously
considered by the farmers. 2/3 of the cost of production is from the
feed. Farmers must make sure that there is no wastage during feeding
time and storing.
There are 2 types of feed for broiler chicken:
- Starter feed for age 1 day – 4 weeks (Crude Protein content
= 22 – 24%)
- Finisher/Fattening feed for age 5 weeks – 7 weeks/sale
(Crude Protein content = 19 – 20%)
There are 3 types of feed for layer chicken:
- Starter feed for age 1 day – 8 weeks (Crude Protein content
= 22 – 24%)
- Developer feed for age 8 weeks – 20 weeks (Crude Protein
content = 14%)
- Finisher feed for age 21 weeks – end of lay (Crude Protein
content = 16 – 20%)
Prevention and Control of Diseases
There are many types of chicken diseases. Consult your veterinarian,
however, the common diseases, which should be controlled from early
stages are:
- Ranikhet
- Fowl Pox
- Respiratory diseases
- Pullorum
The following vaccination program should be strictly adhered by the
farmer:
- Day old – Ranikhet "F" Vaccination
- Age 3 weeks – Fowl Pox accination
- Age 6 weeks – Ranikhet "S" Vaccination
Farmers should control the entrance of bacteria carriers such as
birds, village chickens and other livestock from entering the barn
area. Visitors or outsiders should be banned completely.

MARKETING
Marketing of the chicken should be planned. A successful strategy
project will depend on the good market and the price offered.
Marketing Strategy
The farmers in running their business or marketing strategy should
consider four important factors:
- Location/place (near to the marketing place, no
communication problem)
- Production (can be sold in the form of live chicken,
processed and frozen, cuts, eggs and others)
- Price (Depends on the location and market demand)
- Advertisement (Usually done by the big companies)
Income = Income – Current Cost
Production Cost Per Kilogram = Current cost divided by Weight of
chicken

RECORDS KEEPING
The farmers should record every activity, which involved with
finance. 2 types of record should be made: -
Record Management
- To correct the weakness of management
- To make sure the breed chosen are good
- To make sure the feeds are good
- To minimize the mortality rate
- Used suitable medication
Financial Records
- To know the profit/loss level
- To minimize wastage cost
- As a guide in preparing paper work for expanding project in
future